The Best Class I have Ever Taken

Though we aren’t even a month into the semester I’m pretty positive that I’m currently in not only the best class I’ve taken at Juniata, but the best class I’ve ever taken. When I enrolled in Constitutional Interpretation: Civil Rights I was initially terrified and a little intimidated (it is a mouthful after all). I’m a politics POE so as I was browsing the politics course selections for this semester the name peaked my interest because it stood out from the others, but it also stood out because it’s taught by Dr. Lauren Bowen, the provost. I had yet to take a class with her and honestly I didn’t even know that she taught classes, to me she was just one of those official administration people who occasionally speak at events- except she wasn’t even one of the fun ones like Matthew Damschroder; she was the one who oversaw all of academics which when following the energy of Dr. Damschroder or the “celebrity” of President Troha is considerably less interesting. I added the course to a list of classes I was considering, but it wasn’t something I was super excited about or really wanted to take.

Provost Bowen meeting with students.

But, at an event discussing the Charlottesville incidents Dr. Bowen was one of the speakers and shared her insight on the civil rights side of things and really caught my attention. Some of the things she said challenged my thinking and made me want to hear more, it was at that event, after hearing her share the tiniest bit of her knowledge, that I solidified that I had to take this class. Now, in our fourth week of classes, Dr. Bowen has yet to disappoint. I come to class everyday and feel thoroughly challenged and I leave not only feeling like I know so much more than I did before but somehow always having even more questions than I did before. This is the first class where I’ve genuinely wanted to do my homework; I always feel compelled to be over prepared rather than under prepared. I think the best part of the class, which also originates from Dr. Bowen and how she is as a teacher, is that it doesn’t even feel like work. I’m challenged in the class every day but it doesn’t feel like a challenge, it’s fun and exciting and it’s all so subtle. She knows just the right questions to ask, just the right points to make, and she has a knack for being able to find the weakness on any side or point of an argument. This class is the epitome of what it means to be in a class at Juniata- to be challenged, to have your horizons broadened, to be able to see something that you’ve known forever (like the Constitution) in a way you’ve never seen it before. On top of that, Dr. Bowen is the epitome of a Juniata professor: she’s intelligent, experienced, and engaging.